> the introductions to the YouTube channels NOTE: I am leaving this for posterity and I may come back to some of the topics, but basically this was all a 3am brain dump of what was keeping me up that night. I'm writing new scripts for each channel starting [[clectric.diy#YouTube Channel|here]]. ## on chleggett YouTube channel 1. Welcome. You caught me in the middle of something … my life. 2. Mental health is not a joke. It’s as important or more so than physical health. If you think that you need help, go and get it. 988 if necessary. 3. If I use mental health terms I’m probably using them correctly. If not, call me out on it. 4. Raw introduction to an ongoing project. I accidentally started a business and now I need your help to figure out what we do to make money. 5. I recently had an opportunity to take exactly 12 weeks off of work. That number may be familiar to you, or maybe not, but either way you may want to look it up for some context 6. During those 12 weeks, I had 9 extra hours a day to figure out how to handle things when the 12 weeks was up. I tried a bunch of things and while they all helped none of the worked fully and I wasn’t completely ready to go back. 7. However, I did go back and now it’s a couple of months later and I think that I finally have it figured out. 8. I need an obsession. I’ve bounced between things my whole life. I’d get really into something burn through a period of [[Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS)|GAS]] and then burnout. I’d recover and then go through another obsession and burnout cycle. Rinse and repeat. 9. The issue was that my obsessions were often about work and you can only burnout at work so many times before you find yourself in a situation where you need somewhere up to 12 weeks off. 10. One of the reasons that I’ve been wondering is that we, collectively, have lost something. Connection. We need to reconnect not only with our peers in the put down your cellphone sort of way, we need that too, but … 11. We need to connect across generations. We need to connect to our elders and to anyone who has more experience in a thing that you’re interested in. 12. Some may still have it and that’s awesome, but I think that as a society, in the US at least, we’ve lost it. 13. I have a strong connection with my kids and they tolerate may “lessons”. I volunteer with a youth serving organization that has been around for 115 years and get to share, and hopefully pass down, some of my related knowledge and skills in that domain. 14. However, a big piece is still missing. I was watching Back to the Future with my family the other day. If you haven’t watched it, pause this and come back when it’s over. We’ll wait … go on … just kidding, we’re not going to wait, but if that applies to you and you didn’t pause and come back, shame on you. Make a note to go and see it. 15. Anyway, we’re watching Back to the Future and [[my favorite first daughter]] said: “Can you imagine what people would think about this today? A 17 year old kid hanging around with an old mad scientist.” In 1985, it was my dream to be that kid and to have that mad scientist, and [[John G. Leggett|I almost did]]. [[So it goes.|So it goes]]. 16. So, my new dream is to be that mad scientist for someone else. Even if it’s just one of you. Remember to pass it down, pay it forward, give it away, whatever. 17. During my 12 weeks off, I came up with a plan that music would be my obsession. One problem, I’m not a musician. That’s okay, I’ll become one. How, when, … should I bring a guitar or piano to work with me. Then I found Eurorack modular synth. Big, expensive, … still not it. Virtualized synths on my computer and/or iPad? I’m trying to break free from my screens and wanted those sweet, sweet knobs and faders. MIDI control? A little closer. Semi-modular synths? Now we’re getting warmer. 18. Then I found something that I’ve followed down a rabbit hole. I bought a [[Volca Modular]] and through those tiny DuPont patch wires, I found [[AE Modular]]. 19. So, I had an issue. I started using the heck out of that Volca and got pretty good at using it, but I wanted more. My [[Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS)|GAS]] kicked in and I started shopping for a whole bunch of AE stuff. 20. So, I spent a reasonable amount of money on this less expensive, but equally fun, modular synth format and have been satisfied ever since. 21. Ha! Just kidding. I started obsessing over what AE gear to buy and spent a bunch of money on it. 22. So, the thing about AE is that [[Tangible Waves]], the small company are the originators of the format, are in Germany, so you have to be patient and wait for them to ship your box(es), wait for the boxes to clear customs, wait for it to make it the rest of the way. So that’s what I did, because I’m patient like that. 23. Gotcha again. I had to have an obsession, so I accidentally started a business. This has happened to me a couple of times before, but I’m better medicated these days and it feels different. 24. One of the coolest things about the AE Modulator format is that it runs on much lower voltage than Eurorack, so you can more or less plug it directly into a breadboard with your [[Arduino]]s and other hobby electronics gear. So much so that they make the [[BRAEDBOARD]] which is a module with a freaking [[breadboard]] on it. This cross between my interest in music and in electronics feels like a winner. 25. Plus, I’m close-ish to retirement and have been looking for something that I’ll be able to do afterwards. 26. If you believe in fate or divine intervention, then this is as close as you can get, because: the AE community is very tightly knit, they were just coming off of the high of [[SUPERBOOTH]] (the biggest synthfest of the year), and had a monthly call scheduled on the day that I found out that they had monthly calls, a [[Josh Brandt|guy]] was selling off some of his surplus gear, etc. 27. So, I’m still waiting for my gear to arrive and turned my obsession towards starting [[clectric.io]]. I’m using the “build it in the open” ethos to keep myself motivated. I have an incomplete work out in the world. You’re watching it right now. This video is a step in this process, and … 28. I need your help to figure out where to go from here. It’s not that I don’t have a plan. I’m not that crazy. It’s that I don’t know if my plan will work and I don’t want to go down a manic path of something that I think will work only to burnout again. 29. So, help me out in the comments and help each other out. I’m probably going to make some references that deserve more explanation than I will bore you with in the video. 30. Break off and go do your own thing if you’re inspired to, but if not, stick with me and It may be worth the journey. 31. You’ll have to change the channel first though. I know that this will mess up the algorithm, or whatever, but I’m not hear to serve Al Gore (unless he’s watching). I’m here to serve you. 32. I am going to do that by putting related content into discrete channels. “Personal” stuff here in [[chleggett.io]], Audio and music stuff in in [[clectric.audio]], [[SynthDIY]] and [[Circuit Bending]] stuff in [[clectric.diy]], and maybe some [[clectric.radio|other]] [[clectric.video|things]] in the future. 33. Before we start, I need to straighten up because my space is a mess. Join me at <link to clectric.audio YouTube intro video> ## on clectric.audio YouTube channel 1. My journey so far 2. Please don’t total the cost. I don’t want to know. 3. Piano, MIDI, and a bit of the old Ludwig Van 4. Circuit Bending. [[Reed Ghazala]] and his book. 5. Toys! 6. SynthDIY. We’ll come back to that. 7. “Battle station” 8. Mac 9. ZSA PlankEZ 10. miRack and iPad. I need knobs and keys. 11. KeyLab 12. launch Control 13. Hybrid setup. Eurorack close call. 1. Erica Synths pico. 2. Expert Sleepers ES-9 3. Maths and Abacus. No gatekeeping. 4. Plaits and whatever Behringer calls theirs 5. The graphical 14. Semi modular. 1. Make Noise O-coast. Close call. Asheville. 2. Behringer Crave. No gate keeping! Mother 32. 15. O-Scope and splitter cables. AUM & miRack 16. The dirty secret … effects added in YouTube videos. 17. Audio interface. Loop back. Pico obsoleted. 18. Travel case. Big heavy. Corded. 19. Wireless. Cords! Not a joke. Those are the cords needed for this whole setup. 20. Volca Modular. Small light. Batteries. 21. Limited. Again with the DAW effects. 22. DuPont Patch wires. AE Modular 23. I am going to tell that part of the story on my clectric.diy channel. Follow me there <link to clectric.diy introduction> or if you’re interested, <link to BuJo interlude > ## on chleggett YouTube 1. Bullet Journal interlude 2. My stack of journals 3. The book. Dated. Join BuJo U instead. 4. Foundation plan 5. WFB and transformation plan 6. My journal history and current setup. ## on clectric.diy YouTube 1. “Real battle station” 2. DuPont wires lead to AE Modular 3. Don’t sleep on AE Modular. It’s an awesome alternative to Eurorack and a small fraction of the cost. 4. $ sign size comparison. Eurorack. Eurorack on the cheap. AE Modular. 5. Designed for electronics hacking 6. Unboxing jump cut! 7. BRAEDBOARD 8. Electronics. Make: Electronics by Charles Platt 9. SynthDIY 10. Resources 1. Moritz, 2. HAWIGO, 3. Look mum no computer 4. MFOS 5. Ray Wilson’s Make: Synthesizers 6. Collin’s Lab 7. the new book guy 8. Synthux Academy 11. clectric 1. AE Modular Community 2. Daisy Seed 3. APC 4. Licensing 12. Back to the books. 3 of them. 13. Goodbye for now. 14. Come see me over at clectric.diy